Target-trap



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-'Sheet 1.

W. O. DONALDSEN. TARGET TRAP.

No. 525,317. Patented Aug. 28, 1894.

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(No Model.) 2 sheets-sheet 2. W. G. DONALDSEN.

TARGET TRAP.

No. 525,317. Patented Aug. 28, 1894.

WITNESSES 'ZWVEW'TOQ fliiorneys.

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' NITED STATES ATENT Enron.

WILLIAM. C. DONALDSEN, OF WINDSOR, CANADA, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO WILLIAM H. BRADY, OF DETROIT, MICHIGAN.

/ TARGET-TRAP.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 525,317, dated August 28, 1894.

Application filed January 81, 1894. Serial No. 4:98.677. (No model.)

To a whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, WILLIAM G. DONALD- SEN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Windsor, county of Essex, Province of Ontario, Canada, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Target-Traps; and I declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it pertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to traps for throwing targets of the kind known to sportsmen as clay pigeons, and it has for its object attachments to be added to the ordinary trap used for that purpose, by means of which the clay disks or pigeons can be loaded into the arm from which they are to be thrown, from the stand at which the marksman takes his position. A further attachment enables me to shift the position of the arm by which the pigeons are thrown, in any direction that may be desired, and to shift it from the place where the marksman stands. A still further attachment enables me to spring the trap and throw the pigeon from the place Where the marksman stands.

In the drawings, Figure 1 shows the trap in perspective. Fig. 2 shows the magazine for holding a number of pigeons, and indicates the manner in which they are transferred from the magazine to the arm of the trap. Fig. 3 shows the position of the maga zine and the arm at the time the diskis transferred from the magazine to the arm. Fig. 4 is a modification of the throwing arm.

I employ this invention in connection with an ordinary bird throwing trap, such as is shown in Fig. 1, in which, upon a base A, ar-

ward end swiveled to it a pair of fingers O and 0 At the forward end of the finger C is a pin 0', against which the disk of the target rests. The finger C is made double; the under part of it embraces the lower part of the clay disk, and the upper part rests above the flange of the clay disk. The double finger C is held in position with respect to the finger C by an adjustable spring tension produced by a spring and thumb screw 0 In loading the pigeons into the fingers, the arm 0 is turned backward until it rests behind the spring catch 0. The pigeon is then placed between the fingers O and G and is released 'from the trap by drawing down sharply the catch c.v The .arm 0, under the impelling force of the spring S, rapidly turns on the pivot by which it is held to the bar B, and the clay disk, during some portion of the throw of the arm 0, leaves the fingers and flies 01f into the air, furnishing a mark for the sportsman. The angle of elevation of the bar B is adjusted by means of a quadrant Q, and set screw q; and the angle that the arm takes with respect to the base A is adjusted by turning the entire arm and parts connected with it about a vertical standard that springs from themiddle of the base A, and after it has been adjusted in its desired position, it is held in adjustment by the spring dog D, that engages with one of the notches din the edge of the base table A.v The spring dog D is released from the notch d by lifting the lever d and drawing the dog back from the notchd.

The parts thus far described are well known and in common use, and are those to which I attach my improvements. First, to shift the bar and frame work attached to it around their vertical axis, I secure to the standard which springs from the center of the table A, a plate 2, that extends backward and to one side of the main axis of the trap, and is fashioned into a general framework forall of the attachments which pertain to the changing of the angle of the trap, and to loading the fingers with the disk. From the under part of the table 2 depends a hanger 3, in which are a pair of pulleys, 4 and 5, the pulleys being directly under the handle 01' of the dog D. I pass a cord around some part of the bar B, as, for instance, around the rear standard 8, to which the spring S is attached, using this part of the arm B, because it is directly over the handle d of the dog D; and I make the middle of the cord fast to this part of the arm B. The two ends of the cord I pass downward, leading one of them around the pulley 5 to the right, and the other around the pulley 4: to theleft; I pass the ends of the cords through the sheaves 6 and 7, one of which is secured to some firm object on the right, and the other to some firm object on the left of the machine, and lead the two ends of the cord back to the sportsmans stand. If the sportsman now draws taut upon the cords 8 and 9, he will first draw the handle (1 upward, releasing the dog from the notch cl, and he can now, by straining one of the cords 8 or 9 more than the other, shift the bar B and the frame work attached to it, around their vertical axis through a considerable angle, and, releasing the ends of the cords, the dog will engage with one of the notches d and hold the bar and frame work in the newly chosen position.

In order to draw the arm C back into engagement with the spring catch 0, I make fast to the arm 0 near its forward end a cord 10, lead this backward through a guide or guard 11, through a pulley 12 that is swiveled to the auxiliary frame 2, and thence leads to the sportsmans station. The pulley 12 is swiveled to the frame 2 because I find that, if not so swiveled, the cord will not work freely through it at all of the various angles in which the frame may be placed, but that, when so swiveled, the pulley l2 adjusts itself to the position taken by the main bar B, and the cord works easily. Upon pulling back the cord, 10, the arm 0 is pulled around its swivel until it catches behind the spring catch 0 in the position ready to be loaded. To enable me to. load from the sportsmans stand, and to load consecutively for a number of timessay twenty-five, thirty, or as many times as may be desired,-I place upon the frame 2 a magazine 13 of the size proper to receive within its interior a number of the clay disks or other disks, for targets. Near the bottom of the magazine 13 is an escapement mechanism, shown best in Fig. 2. This escapement mechanism consists of a lever 14, hinged to the outside of the magazine by hinge 15. On one side of the hinge 15, and forming a part of the lever 14, is a stop 16 that works through an opening 17 in the walls of the magazine. To the lower end of the lever 14 is attached a cord 18 that reaches to the sportsmans stand, and enables him to draw the lower end of the lever out against the tension of the'spring 19; on the opposite side of the hinge 15 is a spring hook 20, the hooked end of which, 21, works through an opening 22 in the walls of the magazine, and is spaced from the stop 16 sufficiently to permit the edge of a single disk to rest below the hook 21 and on the stop 16. When the cord 18 is drawn and the lower end of the lever 14 pulled outward from the walls of the magazine, drawing the stop 16 from under the lower edge of the disk, the spring hook 21, by the same movement,'is forced inward by the rocking motion of the lever 14 on its pivot, and stops all the disks except the lower one from dropping downward in the magazine, and permits the lowest disk to drop down opposite a passageway 23, 2st, through which the disk can be pushed from the magazine outward.

On the plane of the bottom of the magazine 13, and supported by the main framework 2,

is a table 25, upon which travels an expelling slide 26. To the lower side of the expelling slide 26 is secured a cord 27 that passes around a sheave 28 underneath and near the forward end of the table 25, and leads back through proper guide sheaves 29 to the stand occupied by the sportsman. Normally, the expelling slide 26 is held by a spring 30 just above the table 25, and with its expelling end entirely outside of the magazine 13. A pull on the cord 27 pulls the expelling end of the slide 26 through the magazine, and pushes out from the magazine that one of the targets that has been dropped by the previously described action of the escapement lever 14. If the arm 0, previous to the expulsion of the target from the magazine, has been drawn into its position to be loaded, as shown in Fig. 3, the target will be forced between the fingers O and C in the position it occupies when the arm is loaded in the ordinary way.

As the fingers O and (3 are swiveled to the arm 0, I find that it is desirable to provide for their accurate alignment, so that the fingers will take their proper position in front of the opening 23, and will not lie at an angle thereto. To insure their proper action, I place on the pin by which the fingers (J C are swiveled to the arm 0, a cross bar 3l,and from the ends of the cross bar I lead aspring 32, 33, preferably of rubber, to the outer or free end of the finger O and carry a branch of this rubber spring 34 back to the arm 0 near its pivot. This spring should give great freedom of movement to the fingers C and 0 but should be strong enough to bring the fingers finally to rest with the finger C and the arm 0 in substantial alignment, that being the position they should occupy when loaded and ready to be sprung.

In place of the cross bar 31 and the rubber springs 32, 33, 34, I have employed a device shown in Fig. 4, in which the cord 10, instead of being made fast to the arm 0 near its forward end, passes through an eye near the forward end of the arm 0, and is made fast to an extension projecting rearwardly from the finger C.

The table 25 is made adjustable with respect to the frame 2 at both its front and its rear end, in order that it may correspond both in elevation and in angularity with the arm 0. When the bar B is adjusted through an obliqueangle, it not only changes its angle of obliquity to the table A, but it also changes the absolute elevation of the fingers O and (l above the table A, and it is therefore necessary to adjust the loading mechanism to correspond with this changed elevation, and to correspond with the angle which the arm 0 has now taken. The table 25, upon which rests the magazine 13 and the loading mechanism, is supported at its forward end by two screws 35 and 36, the stems of which pass through eyes,one of which, 37, is seen at the side of the table 25,-and also through nuts, one of which, 38, is indicated inside of the framework 2. The nut 38, and the corresponding nut on the opposite side of the table, are swiveled to the framework to permit the proper engagement of the screw with it, as the relative obliquity between the table 25 and the framework 2 changes. At the rear end of the table 25 is a standard 39, provided with a number of holding holes or notches, in which a set screw 40 engages. The set screw 40 passes through the framework 2. Thus, both the forward end and the rear end of the table 25 are adjustable, and both its elevation and its obliquity can readily be changed. The'slide 26 is prevented from being brought too far forward along the table 25 by a stop 41 that rises from the table 25 through a slot 42 in the slide. Without this stop there is a liability of crushing the disk.

In order that the cord 10 may not interfere with the free movement of the arm 0, I provide a spring 43, one end of which is made fast to the framework 2, and the other end of which is made fast to the cord 10, leaving enough of the cord 10 in front of it to give perfect freedom of movement to the arm 0.

When the arm 0 is drawn back to be loaded, the operator not only draws against the arm, but also draws against the spring 4.3, and as soon as the operator releases the cord, the spring 43 contracts and draws forward the cord 10, so that the only portion of the cord 10 actihg against the free movement of the arm 0, is that portion lying in front of the spring 43 and between it and the end of the arm 0. As this is only a small part of the cord, it offers very little resistance to the free movement of the arm 0, and allows it to swing freely to deliver the target.

Having thus described my invention, what i I claim as new, and desire to have secured to me by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a disk throwing trap, a throwing arm adapted to grasp the disk, a magazine forholding a number of disks, means for expelling the disks consecutively from the magazine and for forcing the expelled disks into the throwing arm of the trap, substantially as and for the purpose described.

2. In a disk throwing trap, in combinatlon with a disk throwing arm and a support upon which it is pivotally supported, a ratchet, a dog engaging therewith adapted to prevent the arm from swinging on its pivotal support, means actuated from a distance for disengaging the dog and ratchet, and swinging the arm on said pivotal support, and reengaging the dog and ratchet, substantially as and for the purpose described.

3. In combination with a disk throwing trap, an auxiliary framework, a magazine mounted on said framework, means for adjusting said magazine to correspond in height and angularity with the disk throwing arm, substantially as described.

4. In combination with a disk throwing trap, an auxiliary frame work, means for changing from a distance the horizontal, angular direction of the disk throwing arm of said trap, acord adapted to set said trap from a distance, and a swiveled guide pulley through which said cord operates, substantially as and for the purpose described.

5. In combination with a disk throwing trap, having a swiveled delivery arm, and disk holding fingers swiveled on said delivery arm, a re-adjustingspring which brings the fingers in proper alignment with the arm, substantially as described.

6. In combination with a disk throwing trap, a swinging delivery arm, disk holding fingers pivoted to said delivery arm, an adjusting spring which properly aligns the fingers with the delivery arm, a magazine, means for dropping the disks to the bottom of the magazine one by one, and means for forcing the disks from the bottom of the magazine into the fingers of the throwing arm,substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I sign this specification in the presence of two witnesses.

WILLIAM C. DONALDSEN.

Witnesses:

F. W. DONALDSON, FRANCES OLOUGH. 

